Chapter Text
Kalluto’s stomach rolls.
They’ve had a lifetime of practice hiding their discomfort, but somehow it’s harder when it’s Killua and Alluka and Aunt Mito and Gon that they’re hiding it from. Here on Whale Island, the sheer amount of social interaction that’s expected of them is so much higher. It’s not enough to keep their face impassive, because they have to smile and talk with the others– they have to react.
“I wash, you dry?” Kalluto hears Alluka ask them.
“Yes, that works.”
It’s so, so nice on a normal day to curl upon the couch with their siblings, even if they get a little squished, and watch a movie or play a game. It took them a while to get accustomed to it, but they’re used to it now. Sometimes they even let Mito stroke their hair, or let Nanika pull at the neat puffy fold of their obi in the back. They enjoy spending weekends here on Whale Island, and that combined with missions for the Troupe makes it so Kalluto hardly ever spends the weekend at school anymore.
But today is not a normal day. Kalluto feels sick, and so all their effort is going into hiding it.
Their head spins and their stomach cramps and they’re sweating excessively, and they can only hope that they can hide it until dinner cleanup is over and they can disappear.
~~~
Mito’s hands are busy with the ironing, but she can see Gon in the doorway out of the corner of her eye.
“What is it, Gon?” she says. “Don’t tell me you broke something else.”
Gon comes closer.
“No, that’s not it, Aunt Mito. I don’t think Kalluto’s feeling good,” he says.
“Oh no, why do you say that?” she asks.
“They smell like they’re sick. Can you check on them?” His brows pinch with worry.
“Of course I can. Thanks for letting me know.” Mito switches the electric iron off and heads upstairs, into the room that Alluka and Kalluto are sharing.
She knocks. “Come in!” says a cheery voice. Alluka.
Mito pushes open the door to find Alluka sprawled on her bed, book in hand.
“Where’s Kalluto?” Mito asks.
“I’m not sure. I thought they were downstairs with you.”
“Ah, okay. Thank you.”
Mito runs into Killua on the stairs. “Do you know where Kalluto is?” she asks.
“I dunno. Bathroom maybe?” Killua starts to walk past her, but she puts a hand on his shoulder.
“Do you know if they're feeling alright? Gon said they might not be,” Mito says.
Killua looks concerned. “If Gon said something, then they’re probably not. I did notice they were a little quiet at dinner.”
Mito nods distractedly, thinking back to their meal. Killua is right.
“But– Mito,” Killua continues. He looks slightly uncomfortable. “Back home, we… weren’t supposed to show signs of being sick. It meant we weren’t up to standard on poison immunity training, that we needed to work harder. Kalluto probably doesn't want you to know, if they are sick.”
Mito doesn’t quite know how to react to this, her heart breaking just a little. “Thanks for letting me know, Killua. You’re a good big brother.”
Killua makes a face that Mito can’t quite read. He’s not used to praise, and he looks a little disbelieving. He’s just a kid, and he’s already been through so much. All of his siblings have.
Mito heads down the stairs and towards the door of the bathroom, which is closed. She knocks.
“Kalluto?” she calls. “Are you in there?”
“Yes,” comes the response. Cheery, but fake.
“Is everything okay?”
“Yes, of course. I’m fine.”
Mito rests her head against the doorframe, feeling helpless. “Please let me know if you need anything,” she says.
When Kalluto isn’t out of the bathroom fifteen minutes later, she fishes out an old hairpin from the junk drawer.
“Kalluto,” she calls again, knocking. There’s no response. “Kalluto, are you alright?”
She hears something from inside, but it’s not quite words.
“I’m coming in.” Please let them be okay.
Mito doesn’t know a lot about picking locks, but this one wasn’t built to be high security, so after a minute of wiggling the hairpin around she gets the door open.
Kalluto is hunched over the toilet, looking ill. Their hair is unkempt, their face shines with sweat, and they look like they’d fall over if they weren’t clinging to the toilet. They look up at Mito as she enters with a gasp of alarm, but their gaze is fevered and weak.
“Oh, Kalluto,” she says, starting towards them. Kalluto just looks at her with that absent, anxious gaze, and no sooner has she taken a step towards them than they sway where they’re sitting and throw up. They’re so weak that a good portion of it doesn't end up in the toilet bowl, staining their blouse.
“It’s okay,” she says, holding back Kalluto’s hair and helping them lean over the toilet. “It’s okay.”
When they’re finished, they sink back into Mito’s arms with a glazed look in their eyes, gasping.
~~~
Everything is bright and gleaming and cold and hot. Kalluto is sweaty and everything hurts and something, something is wrong but their brain has gone away to someplace else, a separate place from their body so that they can’t quite tell what it is.
Someone presses a glass of water to their lips, and they allow the cool water to trickle down their painful throat.
Someone’s saying something. There are two people in the room, and then one. Or maybe they were the same person. Noticing these things takes so much effort.
“I’ve got you. Let’s get you fixed up, okay?” It’s a woman’s voice.
Oh, Machi. Of course, Machi’s always the one who fixes them up after a mission. They’re in good hands.
The other person is back holding something that rattles. Pills. Kalluto finds one at their lips, is asked to open their mouth and swallow. More poison, but Kalluto is obedient. Then again, it’s Machi, so maybe it’s medicine and not poison. They’re kind of the same thing, aren’t they? Or maybe not. Kalluto swallows.
~~~
“Thanks, Killua,” Mito says, handing the water glass back to him. Killua looks worried.
“Is there anything else I can do?” he asks.
“I’ll let you know if there is,” Mito promises. “I’m going to get them changed and in bed with a bucket.”
Killua nods. “I’ll get one for you, then.” He leaves.
Poor boy. He and Kalluto are closer now, but he doesn’t always know how to be a good big brother to them. He puts a lot of pressure on himself.
Of course, Kalluto is her main priority right now. Mito reaches for the pajamas that Killua brought, setting them on the edge of the sink and kneeling down with the youngest Zoldyck again.
“Machi, where’s everyone else?” they say weakly.
“Shh, you’re okay,” Mito says. They’re delirious. “We’ve got to get you out of these clothes and into pajamas. Then you can sleep, okay?”
Mito hopes that Kalluto cooperates. Back when they had to prepare for the court hearing to grant her custody, the Zoldyck children were examined for evidence of previous injuries inflicted by their family. Well, Killua and Alluka were. Kalluto refused. They wouldn’t let anyone examine them, calmly threatening to fight off anyone who tried. They wouldn’t even let Kurapika do it, even though they had become good friends. Kalluto had been excited to meet another non-binary person, and their studious personalities had meshed well. But still, Kalluto had wanted to keep them away from the exam room.
Then there was an issue with the school. Mito was informed that Kalluto was failing PE class as a result of refusing to attend. When she looked into the matter, it came to light that the root of the issue was that Kalluto refused to wear short sleeves. Mito gave the administration an earful, explaining that Kalluto came from an abusive home and might have a very good reason not to feel comfortable wearing short sleeves. The school apologized, and even let Kalluto custom-order a long sleeve gym uniform and swim suit. Once allowed to wear more conservative clothing, Kalluto happily attended class.
So, Mito would never willingly put Kalluto in a position where they had to undress in front of her or anyone. But she can’t leave them in a vomit-stained shirt, either.
However, to her surprise and relief, Kalluto doesn’t protest. “Okay,” they say.
Mito leans Kalluto against the wall and starts to unbutton their stained blouse. They’re weak, but cooperate, and Mito soon has the blouse off them and into the trash.
Mito expected some sort of horrible scarring, burn marks maybe, but Kalluto doesn’t have half the scars Killua does. Instead, Mito’s eyes are drawn to a black tattoo on the curve of their shoulder, stretching partway down their upper arm. It’s a spider, but with too many legs, and a number four on its back.
How could parents do this to their child? Why would they, even? The tattoo must be a significant source of shame for Kalluto, but Mito can’t make any sense of it. She can only assume it has some sort of symbolism she isn’t aware of. Maybe the Zoldycks’ idea of a creative punishment. Looking at it gives Mito the chills.
She finishes helping change Kalluto into pajamas and otherwise cleaning them up, and a few minutes later with Killua’s help, Kalluto is upstairs and in bed.
Mito sits them up with a bucket in their lap and strokes their hair gently. Their violet eyes seem like they’re staring far into the distance.
Gon knocks on the open door.
“What’s the news?” she asks.
“I called Billy’s by the docks like you said, and they’re getting a boat ready to bring them to the hospital if needed. But there’s also a ship with a doctor on board in the docks, who can be here in forty minutes. He’s on the phone now, he wants to hear Kalluto’s symptoms so he can bring the right supplies from his ship.” Gon holds out the phone to Mito, who stands and meets him halfway.
“Thanks, dear,” she says, and holds the phone to her ear. “Hello, this is Mito Freecss speaking.”
“Hi there, I’m Dr. Zayas. Your nephew said you have a sick kid. I can head up and check on them, but I wanted to hear more about their symptoms first.”
“Of course. Kalluto has a high fever, is throwing up, and seems pretty delirious. They’re lying down right now but I noticed them seeming almost dizzy earlier.”
“Hmm, that could be a number of things. I’ll come take a look. Do they have any allergies, or medical conditions I should know about? Oh, and how old are they by the way?”
“No, none. And they’re twelve.”
“Okay. I’ll hurry over, but it’s a long way to the top of the hill so it’ll probably take me at least forty minutes. Try to keep them hydrated with little sips of water. The men here are also prepping a boat in case there needs to be a hospital trip to the mainland, but hopefully we can avoid that, because it’s a long trip and it’s not good for a sick person.”
“Okay. Thank you, Dr. Zayas,” Mito says.
“Of course. See you soon.” The phone clicks as the call ends. Mito puts the phone back down on its charging port and returns to the room Kalluto shares with Alluka.
“Machi?” Kalluto calls weakly as Mito enters. “Are the others okay?”
“Yes, Alluka and Killua and Gon and Abe are just fine,” Mito reassures them, but she’s not sure who Kalluto thinks she is right now– she doesn’t know anybody named Machi– so she doesn’t know for sure who they were asking about.
“Where’s the Boss?” they ask.
“I’m sorry, I don’t know,” she answers. Kalluto must be deep in a world of hallucination.
They’re silent, but tears gather at the corners of their eyes.
~~~
Dr. Zayas rises, putting his stethoscope back around his neck.
“Any idea what it might be?” Mito asks, maintaining an even voice.
“Strangely enough, I do. It’s Colonba fever, and I happen to carry the medicine for it with me. So, Kalluto will be okay.” He opens his briefcase and sorts through a few vials, pulling one out.
“Why is it strange?’” Mito asks.
“Because Colonba fever is transmitted by tropical rain flies, which live only in the southern part of the Yorbian continent. Has Kalluto been traveling recently?”
“No,” says Mito, bewildered. “They attend boarding school on the mainland of Padokea. I don’t think they’ve ever been to Yorbia.”
“That’s why it’s strange. Given that a case has popped up here, on Whale Island, we should report it to the authorities. It’s possible that rain flies have become invasive here. The rest of the island’s population needs to be monitored for symptoms.”
“Is it a serious illness?”
“Yes, extremely. Without treatment, your prospects aren’t good. However, the medicine is highly effective.” Dr. Zayas draws some liquid from the vial into a needle, and, after a few more preparations, injects it into Kalluto’s arm.
Kalluto is so out of it, they don’t even seem to notice.
“May I use your telephone?” the doctor asks.
“Of course.”
~~~
Killua feels like a crappy brother.
Kalluto’s sick. Really sick. Colonba fever is one of those diseases you read about that happen in far away places, not to people you know. That doesn’t change the fact that hundreds of thousands of people die from it every year.
He hugs his legs to his chest on the couch, brooding.
“Killua, stop brooding.” Gon pokes him, and Killua slaps his hand away.
“I am not,” he says.
Gon wedges himself in the spot on the couch between Killua and the arm rest. “Kalluto will be okay.”
“Yeah, and how do you know that?”
“I just do.” Killua looks up at the boy beside him. Gon’s eyes shine like nobody else’s, Killua thinks. Two pools of amber brown, like caramel and chocolate. “Also, the doctor says so.”
“Yeah.” Killua looks down. “I suppose so.”
“Brother?” That’s Alluka, from the doorway. “Can I sit with you?” Her small hands twist in the folds of her dress.
“Of course you can.” Killua pats the couch cushion.
Alluka joins them on Killua’s other side, cuddling up against him. She’s glued herself extra firmly to his side as though to make up for the Kalluto-sized gap left over on the other end of the couch.
“We should call Kurapika and Leorio,” Gon says, breaking the silence.
“Yeah. They’ll want to know that Kalluto’s sick,” Alluka agrees.
“We shouldn’t bother them right now, but let’s call in the morning,” Killua says. They will want to know– they’ve become sort of like uncles to Killua and his siblings and Gon, coming over every now and then for dinner and game night. Leorio and Alluka teamed up against them at the game Real Estate Domination, and Kurapika and Kalluto turned out to have similar taste in books.
“Leorio’s a doctor. Maybe he can provide an extra opinion for Kalluto’s symptoms,” Alluka says. “Colonba fever is just so…” She trails off.
“Yeah,” Killua says. On either side of him, both Gon and Alluka lean closer. The spot where Kalluto normally sits next to Alluka grows larger.